1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a mobile robotic system, more particularly to a battery charging method for a mobile robotic system.
2. Description of the Related Art
Robotic vacuum floor cleaners have grown in popularity in recent years due to the rapid reduction in their manufacturing costs. Conventional robotic vacuum floor cleaners generally utilize rechargeable batteries as a source of power. When battery power runs low, the cleaner will not be able to operate. Hence, inconvenience is encountered since there is a need for the user to check periodically the power level of the rechargeable batteries so that charging of the latter may be conducted under manual supervision whenever the battery power runs low. In view of the foregoing, various automatic battery charging systems, such as those disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,679,152, 5,682,640 and 5,646,494, for robotic vacuum floor cleaners have been proposed heretofore so that the cleaners are able to move to a charging station for battery charging without human intervention whenever the battery power runs low. Nevertheless, the known automatic battery charging systems for robotic vacuum floor cleaners are disadvantageous in that they involve complex designs that are costly to implement and that require precise alignment between the cleaner and the charging station before battery charging can commence.